Kids’ Lives are at Stake in the Board of Education Race.

Posted on May 16, 2022May 16, 2022 by Jenny

"One of the charges thrown against the book was that it promoted pedophilia — based on a single panel depicting an erotic ancient Greek vase. Others simply called it pornography, a common accusation against work with themes of queer sexuality. Queer youth are often forced to look outside their own homes, and outside the education system, to find information on who they are. Removing or restricting queer books in libraries and schools is like cutting a lifeline for queer youth, who might not yet...

Following Up on “Flip Flops”

Posted on January 21, 2022January 21, 2022 by Jenny

Whew. A lot has transpired since my last piece on the Citizens’ Election Fund kerfuffle. I won’t be covering all of it in this piece, because it would fill a book at this point, and y’all know how to use Google. But I did want to follow up on some of the details other folks may have missed. This week, the County Council held a public hearing on CB-6, the bill intended to revise the CEF statute and eliminate the verbiage stating that elections will be determined to be contested (or not) on th...

Flip-Flops and Funding

Posted on January 13, 2022January 12, 2022 by Jenny

This week, I've been tracking some consternation in the community regarding the Citizens' Election Fund, Howard County's public campaign financing program. In 2016, Howard County voters voted for a charter amendment via a ballot question to establish the fund, and the County Council introduced legislation instituting the program. Then-County Executive Allan Kittleman consistently and steadfastly opposed the CEF program, saying "our taxes should not go to boost the campaign coffers of any politi...

Open Letter to White Women

Posted on November 6, 2020November 6, 2020 by Jenny

White women, let's have a chat. Earlier this week, I wrote Dear White Women out of frustration with the many white women whose ignorance of the Black American experience gave them permission to cast a vote to re-elect a racist like Donald Trump. Since writing that piece, the country has been hanging on tenterhooks waiting for election results. What's become clear in that time is that Black Americans got out the vote to defeat Donald Trump. Full stop. And the Twitter commentary of bri...

Dear White Women

Posted on November 4, 2020 by Jenny

Those of you who have clicked my “About” button above can see that I’m a white woman. There are about 120 million of us in the U.S. We’re a pretty heterogeneous group, race and gender aside. When it comes to our identities, our opinions, our faiths, our families, and our lifestyles, we are anything but a monolithic group. White women’s experiences in life are just as varied. Many of us have experienced the joys of partnership and motherhood. Many of us have felt the searing rage boiling...